Parker and Sullivan close ranks on NASA

Houston Mayor Annise Parker and Councilman Mike Sullivan are presenting a united front to preserve 7,000 jobs that could vanish if NASA's Constellation program is canceled.
The mayor said Wednesday that Sullivan, whose district includes the Johnson Space Center, will lead efforts to change the president's mind. But there's a backup plan:
That, the mayor said, would be to make the Houston area the base for a Mars exploration plan that NASA Administrator Charles Bolden described this week.
Read more from the Houston Chronicle.